When thinking about grief and church ministries, puppets aren\u2019t usually the next thing that comes to mind. But in LSU Theatre\u2019s newest show, 17-year-old Jason uses his church\u2019s puppet ministry to help cope with the loss of his father.<\/p>\n
\u201cHand to God,\u201d written by Robert Askins, is a show like no other. Following Jason, his mother and others in their religious community, this play is a strangely dark and comedic exploration of religion, grief and community.<\/p>\n Morgane Campbell, a sophomore psychology major, plays Jessica in the show. She explained that in the show, Jason uses puppets to cope with the craziness around himPuppet from \u201cHand to God\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c[It\u2019s] an escape from all of the things that he\u2019s going through,\u201d Campbell said.<\/p>\n The character of Jessica is a reluctant participant in the puppet ministry in a highly religious town. Campbell mentioned that she grew up in a Christain family and went to Catholic school, so it was easy to pull from her experience when creating the character.<\/p>\n \u201cThe show is definitely a little outrageous, a little out there, but I think the people who come to see it will definitely feel a little shock,\u201d said Campbell.<\/p>\n Puppets are a truly rare occurrence in theatrical performances nowadays, and it has been a first for most of the cast and crew. This show has been a learning process for Campbell \u2014 at the beginning, it was a challenge to catch on, but now she\u2019s having fun with it.<\/p>\n Being a lab show, this production is all student led and run, which has allowed the actors and designers a lot of room to try different things. This is Campbell\u2019s first lab show, and she has enjoyed being so collaborative with the team.<\/p>\n \u201cI love when things are student-led,\u201d said Campbell. \u201cBeing able to collaborate and make choices as a team rather than being told what to do like some directors.\u201d<\/p>\n The cast and crew of \u201cHand to God\u201d have become slightly infamous for their fun and odd posts all over Instagram, filled with posts using Charli XCX\u2019s song \u201cHouse\u201d to polls on which team member has a bigger bald spot. Campbell uses the show\u2019s social media to develop her character, thinking about what she would post and portray herself as.<\/p>\n Hunter Nastasi is a senior arts administration major, and he plays the lead character of Jason. When describing his character, Nastasi called him a shy kid who is out of his element. Nastasi is incredibly excited for the show, noting that it interrogates religion by putting it on one side or the other.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s also a very funny play, so there\u2019s that,\u201d Natasi said. \u201cIt really does make you ask questions about Jason and Tyrone [the puppet]. There\u2019s a lot of pulling of the strings from each side. It makes you wonder, like, who\u2019s actually in control. \u2018Is this Jason saying this, or is this actually Tyrone saying this?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The cast and director were hush-hush about quite a few plot points, wanting to keep an element of surprise for the audience. But the really intriguing part about the play is the fact that Jason\u2019s puppet Tyrone gets turned into something different. With the wild plot the show has, it takes a lot of work to bring people together and shape the story.<\/p>\n Ethan Hood is a senior technical theatre and film and television major at LSU, and he is the director of \u201cHand to God.\u201d This is not his first time directing, but like most of the team, it is his first time working with puppets. For him, the puppet part of the show came together quite quickly. Hood mentioned that Brandy Ernst, the play\u2019s puppet designer, loves the Muppets and had them ready to go by the second week of rehearsals.<\/p>\n This show has a lot of moving parts, plus and some dark moments, so it was important for Hood to get outside help with intimacy coordination, fight choreography and more. For him, learning to allow others to help shape the show was something new he had to do.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m hoping the audience takes away from the show that all emotions are valid,\u201d Hood said. \u201cThe show has a lot of humanness in it; there\u2019s a lot of human emotions. Even though there are puppets, it is a very human and very grounded show.\u201d<\/p>\n Hood is most excited for the audience to see Act 2, which is the culmination of everything that is set up at the beginning of the play.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an enjoyable hecticness,\u201d said Hood. \u201cI want this to reflect life, and even though life can get hectic, you gotta slow down and enjoy it sometimes. Just enjoy the fun moments as much as you have to work through the harder moments.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lsureveille.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/image-22-230x300.jpeg\")